Fédération Internationale de Football Association FIFA-Strasse 20 P.O. Box 8044 Zurich Switzerland Tel: +41-(0)43-222 7777 Fax: +41-(0)43-222 7878 FIFA By FAX Ministry of Education & Sports Mrs. Jessica Alupo Rose Epel Minister of Education and Sports Fax: +256 4123 0437 Ref : M/P/129 Zurich, 19 July 2013 SG/tre/pco Status of the Federation of Uganda Football Associations Dear Honourable Minister, In relation to the matter of the reference we acknowledge receipt of your correspondence dated 16 July 2013, the content of which received our utmost attention. In this respect, we have taken due note that following legal guidance from the Solicitor General of Uganda, the Government of Uganda has the intention to “take appropriate measures in public interest with the objective of improving the management of soccer in Uganda”. In this regard, we would like to remind you that all FIFA member associations have to manage their affairs independently and without influence of any third parties as clearly stipulated in articles 13 and 17 of the FIFA Statutes. Therefore any actions/measures taken unilaterally against the structures and/or status of the Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) would be considered as interference in the FUFA affairs and the case would be brought to FIFA’s higher instances for appropriate sanctions, which could include suspension. The legal status of FUFA had already been the object of debate in 2012 when FUFA had informed FIFA that according to the local laws, the national football body had to be registered as an association but also as a limited company if such body wanted to own properties. FIFA had then asked FUFA to clarify the situation with the Ugandan authorities in order to ensure that it was duly recognized. In particular and by means of the letter dated 7 June 2012, FUFA received confirmation from the Ugandan National Council of Sports (NCS; official national regulator of Ugandan sports associations) that it was recognized, registered and certified as the only local/national football governing body in Uganda. By means of such letter, the NCS also explicitly confirmed that it had “no qualms nor reservations whatsoever on the status of FUFA ltd, and their continued compliance with the NCS guiding principles and minimum compliance standards”. In view of the aforementioned and should you consider the FUFA still needs to undergo legal changes/modifications, we would appreciate the provision of clear guidelines on how the federation should proceed. Nevertheless, such changes/modifications should not affect the constitutional structure of the federation. FUFA went through deep changes with the adoption of a new constitution 2 in August 2012 which is now in line with the FIFA standard statutes. Since the adoption of the new constitution, FUFA has undertaken tremendous activities to ensure that the new members are duly constituted and that their delegates properly selected. Any change of the legal status should in no way put into question what has been achieved. In relation to your kind invitation to meet you in order to have consultations over these matters, we are of the opinion that a visit could be envisaged once the situation concerning FUFA’s legal status is further clarified. Yours sincerely, FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION Jérôme Valcke Secretary General cc: FUFA CAF
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 21:05:09 +0000